Flagstaff – Coconino County Sheriff’s deputies had to be treated for fentanyl ingestion after a traffic stop turned into a drug seizure on December 21.
According to the Coconino County Sheriff’s office, at approximately 3:22 p.m., the deputies attempted a traffic stop on a vehicle that was traveling North on Hutton Ranch Road from Townsend Winona Road. The vehicle failed to yield, and a chase ensued.
The driver of the vehicle, Jose Chavarria, was known to the deputies as having a felony warrant out for his arrest for Parole Violation.
The pursuit lasted approximately 10 minutes, when Chavarria’s vehicle became stuck in the cinders.
Once the vehicle became stuck, three occupants were taken into custody without further incident.
While taking the suspects into custody, deputies noticed drug paraphernalia inside the vehicle. During a subsequent search of the vehicle, the deputies began to feel sick and experienced symptoms consistent with Fentanyl ingestion. The deputies were administered Narcan immediately after experiencing the symptoms.
The Narcan seemed to mitigate the symptoms, according to the Sheriff’s Office, and they were later transported to Flagstaff Medical Center as a precautionary measure. The deputies are in stable condition. The substance has not been officially identified.
Chavarria, age 26 from Flagstaff, was transported to Flagstaff Medical Center for precautionary measures as well.
Chavarria will be booked into the Coconino County Jail on the felony Parole Violation warrant along with several other charges once he is released from the hospital.